"?Aston Villa chairman Dr Tony Xia has confirmed that the club have enquired over the availability of Hull City striker Abel Hernandez, whilst also hinting that they are exploring alternative options.
"?Reported by the Sun, the new Chinese owners are willing to pay a Championship record fee in order to secure the services of the Uruguayan.
The Villans will offer the Premier League side £14m up front, with a further £6m add-ons based upon bonuses and achievements at the club.
Hull will be unwilling to part with their main striker, especially given the fact that the Tigers currently have 13 first team players available for selection.
Furthermore, having netted on 20 occasions during Hull's push for promotion under Steve Bruce, Hernandez is pivotal to the club's success. The striker demonstrated his worth after being heavily involved in the Tigers' first game of the season against champions Leicester before scoring in the 2-0 victory over Swansea.
Aston Villa have already spent big this window after signing Ross McCormack from Fulham for a fee of £12m, but with Rudy Gestede injured and Gabriel Agbonlahor's future at the club uncertain, Xia appears willing to delve back into the market.
The Chinese businessman is extremely active on Twitter, taking the time to keep fans up to date with ongoings at the club and transfer developments.
It was no different with the Hernandez situation as Xia confirmed that there was truth to the rumours linking the club with a move for the striker.
It's real. We kept trying whole summer but still didn't work. We're going2other option and expect announce tomorrow https://t.co/wOqbAApqrr
However Xia did add that the club had begun to look elsewhere for a new forward, stating that a new name may be added to the playing squad on Sunday. His comments do make a move for Hernandez seem unlikely, after the Tigers man featured in the 1-0 defeat to Manchester United on Saturday evening.